Can tap



Oct. 18, 1960 H. D. LANE 2,956,338

CAN TAP Filed April 6, 1959 FIG. 3

HERBERT D. LANE INVENTOR.

1 I I I I ATTORNEY United States Patent CAV TAP Herbert D. Lane, 2909 NW. 15, Oklahoma City, Okla.

Filed Apr. 6, 1959, Ser. No. 804,428

2 Claims. (Cl. 30--16) The present invention relates to utensils and more particularly to a sealed can tap or punch.

Most of the devices presently available for tapping or forming an aperture in the top of sealed cans containing milk, fruit juice, or the like, form only a relatively small opening in the can top and provide no means for gripping or holding the can in an upright position during the tapping or hole punching operation. Furthermore, most of the devices presently available fail to provide sufficient handle means for manually grasping the punching device.

It is, therefore, the principal object of the instant in vention to provide a sealed can punching or tapping device for perforating a sealed and of a can.

Another object is to provide a can tap or punch which will form a substantially wedge shaped aperture in the sealed end of a can extending from a point spaced inwardly of the side wall of the can to the adjacent interior surface of the can.

Another object is to provide a device of this class which may be easily used for tapping cans and which requires only the use of one hand of the user.

An additional object is to provide a device of this class having a handle means forming an integral part thereof which positions the hand of the user in spaced relation above the surface of the can.

A further object is to provide a device of this class which provides a vertical support member, in combination with the tapping member, for gripping the side of the can during the tapping operation.

Still another object is to provide a device of this character which is sturdily constructed and has no moving parts to become lost or get out of order thereby providing a device of relatively long life.

The present invention accomplishes these and other objects by providing a bar member, such as strap metal, doubled back upon itself intermediate its ends in horizontal spaced-apart relation for forming a handle portion and a depending end portion. A tapping spur is formed integral with the depending end portion, intermediate its ends, which projects angularly outward from the surface of the depending end portion. The spur is substantially wedge shaped and is disposed with the base thereof transverse to the longitudinal axis of the depending end portion. The free end portion of the depending end, projecting beyond the end of the spur, is adapted to contact an outer side wall of the can for positioning the tip end of the spur a spaced distance inwardly from the edge of the can and co-operates with the spur during the punching operation to exert a clamping pressure on the side of the can.

Other objects will be apparent from the following description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying single sheet of drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the device, per se;

Figure 2 is a side elevational view of the device in operation, a fragment of the can being shown in cross section; and,

ice

Figure 3 is a front elevation view of the device, illustrating another manner of using the device in tapping a can, a fragment of the can being shown in cross section.

Like characters of reference designate like parts in those figures of the drawings in which they occur.

In the drawings:

The reference numeral 10 indicates the device, as a whole, comprising a bar 12, substantially rectangular in cross section, such as a selected length of strap metal. Intermediate its ends the bar 12 is doubled back upon itself intermediate its ends in spaced-apart relation forming a pair of horizontal extants 14 and 16 integrally joined at one end by a vertical extant 18 in substantially a U-shape for forming a handle portion 19. The free end portion of the upper horizontal extant .14 is turned or bent upwardly in perpendicular relation to form a vertical hand guard member 20 having the free transverse edge portion arcuately curved forwardly as at 22. The opposite end of the bar forms an end portion 24 which depends from the horizontal extant 16 a selected distance.

A wedge shaped prong or spur 26 is formed integrally with the depending end portion 24 of the bar as by punching out a section of the material of the bar and as is indicated by the apertme 23. The base end of the spur 26 is disposed transversely of the longitudinal axis of the depending end portion 24 at a selected position intermediate the ends of the latter. The material forming the spur 26 is bent or turned outward at the base end of the spur as at 30 thus positioning the spur so that it projects angularly downward and outward of the plane of the adjacent surface of the bar a distance at least equal to the wall thickness of the can. The free tip end portion of the spur is rounded or ground off, as at 32, to form a sharp or pointed tip end on the spur to facilitate its being manually forced through the material forming the end of a sealed can as is more fully explained hereinbelow. As is clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 2 the end portion 24A of the end portion 24 of the bar is angularly bent or turned rearwardly and downwardly in two places, as at 34 and 36, adjacent the base of the spur 26 and spaced downwardly therefrom, respectively, along lines transverse to the longitudinal axis of the depending end portion, thus positioning the end portion 24A of the bar projecting beyond the spur 26 in a plane parallel with but off-set with respect to the plane of the portion 24. This further increases the spacing between the spur 26 and that portion 24A of the bar projecting beyond the spur a distance at least equal to twice the wall thickness of the can. However, it is to be noted that this spacing between the two bends of the depending portion of the bar and the under or inward surface of the spur forms an upwardly converging inverted V-shaped slot or recess 38 for exerting a gripping or clamping pressure on the side wall of a can as is more fully explained hereinbelow.

Operation In operation the user grasps the handle portion 19 in one hand with the depending end portion 24 positioned forwardly of the index finger and in depending relation therewith. The end portion 24A is positioned against the outer side surface of a can 40 thus positioning the free tip or pointed end of the spur 26 against the upper surface of the can end 42 a spaced distance inwardly of the outer upper edge 44 of the can. Pressure manually applied downwardly to the handle portion then forces the spur 26 into and through the can end 42. Since the spur 26 is disposed angularly with respect to the depending bar portion 24A the downward movement of the device exerts a clamping pressure on the outer wall of the can as the tool or device is moved downwardly until the upper edge 44 of the can is seated by the upper limit of the slot 38 and forms a substantially wedge shaped aperture or opening 46 in the can. This opening or aperture 46 formed in the can end is further characterized by the section of displaced can end material being turned or bent inwardly of the can to lie adjacent the inner surface of the can side Wall, as at 48, thus forming an aperture 46 which will more efliciently empty the contents of the can when the device is removed after the opening operation.

A second or alternate spur 50 is integrally formed from the material of the depending end portion 24A of the bar on one side edge thereof (Figs. 1 and 3). This alternate spur 50 is formed by cutting away a portion of the side edge 51 of the portion 24A and leaving the pointed ended spur 50 having a transverse width substantially equal with respect to the thickness of the bar material. This spur 50 is similarly turned or bent angularly outward 'of the side edge 51 of the end portion 24A to form an upwardly converging slot 52. In operation the spur 50 is used by manually positioning the side edge 51 adjacent the outer side surface of the can 40 and forcing the spur 50 through the can end 42. This forms a relatively small hole or aperture 54 in the can end having a configuration defined by the perimeter of the spur 50 and which is desirable for puncturing the tops of cans of condensed milk or the like or for forming an aperture diametrically opposed to the aperture -46 for admitting air to the can when emptying the contents thereof through the wedge shaped opening 46.

Obviously the invention is susceptible to some change or alteration without defeating its practicability, and I therefore do not wish to be confined to the preferred embodiment shown in the drawings and described herein, further than I am limited by the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A can tap, including: a strap metal bar doubled back upon itself in horizontal spaced relation for forming a handle portion and an end portion depending vertically from one end of the handle portion; and a spur struck out from said end portion and projecting angularly outward of the plane of the surface of said bar opposite the handle portion in upwardly spaced relation with respect to the lowermost end of said depending end portion of the bar, said spur being wedge shaped and disposed with the base end thereof transverse with respect to the longitudinal axis of the depending end portion of said bar, the free end of said spur being spaced from the plane of the adjacent surface of said bar a distance at least equal to the wall thickness of a can to be opened, said depending end portion being transversely bent laterally adjacent its juncture with the base end of said spur and being transversely bent in parallel spaced relation below the first bend for disposing the free depending end portion of said bar in a plane parallel with respect to the plane of the bar portion between said spur and said handle portion and laterally off-set therefrom a distance substantially equal to the thickness of said bar for contacting an outer side wall of the can and positioning said spur a spaced distance inwardly from the edge thereof, said laterally off-set depending end portion cooperating with said spur during the tapping operation to exert a-clarnping pressure on the side of the can.

2, A can tap, including: a bar, substantially rectangular in cross section, doubled back upon itself intermediate its ends in horizontal spaced relation for forming a substantially U-shaped handle portion and an end portion depending vertically from said handle portion; and a spur struck out from said end portion substantially medially its ends and projecting angularly outward and downward of the plane of the surface of said bar opposite the handle portion, said spur being wedge shaped and having curvate edges terminating in a pointed tip end, the base end of said spur being transversely disposed with respect to the longitudinal axis of the depending end portion of said bar, the free end of said spur being spaced from the plane of the adjacent surface of said bar a distance at least equal to the wall thickness of a can to be opened, said depending end portion being laterally bent transversely adjacent its juncture with the base end of said spur and being transversely bent in parallel spaced relation below the first bend for increasing the spacing between the pointed end of said spur and the depending end portion of said bar to a distance at least equal to twice the wall thickness of a can to be opened, said depending end portion being adapted to contact an outer side wall of a can for positioning the free end of said spur a spaced distance inwardly of the edge thereof, said spur and the portion of said bar between the bends forming an inverted V-shape and cooperating during the tapping operation to exert a clamping pressure on the side of the can whereby an aperture is formed in the can extending from the contact point of the free end of said spur with the can top to the inward surface of the side wall of the can.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,814,487 Mueller July 14, 1931 2,025,103 Haudenschidd Dec. 24, 1935 2,602,218 Schmitt July 8, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS 708,399 Germany July 19, 1941 

